Bobbin supporting device



Sept. 13, 1938.

c. D. BROWN- BOBBIN SUPPORTING DEVICE Filed April 14, 1958 INVENTOR. CARL D. BROWN.

\A'ITORNEY.

Patented Sept. 13, 1938 PATENT OFFME BOBBIN SUPPORTKNG DEVICE Garl D. Brown, Hopedale, Mass., assignor to Draper Corporation, Hopedale, Mass, a corporation of Maine Application April 14, 1938, Serial No. 201,992

4 Claims.

The present invention pertains to automatic bobbin changing looms and has more particular reference to bobbin supporting devices for such looms.

Automatic bobbin changing looms commonly include a hopper for holding a reserve supply of bobbins and successively presenting such bobbins in transferring position, a transferrer for transferring the bobbins to the loom shuttle, means for initiating operation of the transferrer, and a swinging bobbin support which may be movable into and out of bobbin supporting position. The said means for initiating operation of the transferrer may include a movable arm having an operative movement which occurs a substantial interval prior to each transferring operation.

As heretofore constructed, swinging bobbin supports have usually been constructed and arranged to be forced out of bobbin supporting position by the bobbin as the latter is transferred to the shuttle. It has been proposed to relieve the transferred bobbin of the strain of thus moving the bobbin support, by moving the latter by connections from the transferrer. Such proposed construction has not proven to be satisfactory, because the transferrer will imp-art to the bobbin support only a limited movement which may occur too late to accomplish the intended purpose.

A principal object of the present invention is to provide a bobbin changing loom having a hopper, transferrer, swinging bobbin support, and means for initiating the transferring operation as aforesaid, and connections from said transferinitiating means to the bobbin support for moving the latter away from bobbin supporting position well in advance of each transferring movement of the transferrer. I

The foregoing and other objects of the invention are accomplished in the construction illustrated on the accompanying drawing, of which:

Fig. l is a view in cross-section of a loom having the preferred embodiment of racy-invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a sin ilar view illustrating the operation of the parts at the time of transfer; and

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of certain parts of the mechanism shown on Figs. 1 and 2.

The drawing shows only part of a loom having my invention applied thereto, the parts and mechanisms not shown being of suitable usual construction and not of the present invention. In addition, certain of the parts shown on the drawing are not new, per se, they being of the present invention only in that they may be used in conjunction with the bobbin support operatbeing at the right on Figs. 1 and 2. The lay caring means hereinafter described to form a complete operative combination.

The usual lay l is mounted to reciprocate toward and from the front of the loom, the front ries at its right hand end a shuttle box 2 for receiving a shuttle 3. The shuttle contains a bobbin 4 which is adapted to be ejected from the shuttle and replaced by a fresh bobbin whenever the filling supply on the bobbin 3 becomes sub- 10 stantially exhausted.

Reserve bobbins 5, 5 are carried by a hopper, the drawing showing a conventional hopper which includes a hopper stand 6 and a revolving disc I. The reserve bobbins 5 are supported in 15 the revolving part of the hopper, which is rotated step by step to successively present the bobbins in transferring position. As shown, the bobbin 5 is in transferring position, which is at the bottom of the hopper and directly over the shuttle box 2, as is well known in the art.

The bobbin changing mechanism includes a transferrer 8 which is pivoted on a stud 9 carried by the stand 6. The transferrer includes a rearwardly extending arm having a head ii] positioned 25 directly over the bobbin 5 in transferring position. The transferrer 8 is normally stationary but is periodically given a transferring movement, during which the head it moves downwardly to drive the bobbin 5 into the shuttle and expel 3O bobbin 4 therefrom. Such movement of the transferrer occurs wherever the usual latch (not shown) on depending arm H is tilted upwardly and is subsequently struck by a bunter on the lay.

The tilting of the aforesaid latch on arm ll is 35 effected by the usual means for initiating transferring operation of the transferrer. Of such means, the drawing shows only a rod or shaft I2 which extends widthwise of the loom and is supported in bearings such as bearing 53 on the breast beam I l, and an arm [5 which is fixed to the shaft 12. During normal operation of the loom, the arm 55 extends downwardly and thence rearwardly from the shaft It as shown by Fig. 1. 45 The shaft I2 is rotated, clockwise on Fig. l, and arm 15 raised to its Fig. 2 position, an appreciable interval of time prior to each operation of the transferrer. The shaft l2 and arm iii are returned to their Fig. 1 position after completion of each transferring operation.

The bobbin 5 in transferring position tends to drop down out of disc I and then turn around. Such dropping and turning of the bobbins is not prevented by prior swinging bobbin supports, but

is entirely prevented by the swinging bobbin support [6 shown on the drawing. The bobbin support It is pivotally mounted on the hopper stand 8, as by being suspended from a pivot I1. A head E8 on the lower end of the bobbin support extends laterally underneath the lower edge of hopper stand 5 and disc 7 and underneath the butts of a plurality of the reserve bobbins including bobbin 5 A spring l9 yieldingly holds the bobbin support forwardly in contact with a fixed stop 20 on the hopper stand, but permits the bobbin support to be swung rearwardly away from bobbin supporting position,

The bobbin support I6 as thus described is of usual construction except that I have so constructed the bobbin support and stop 20 that the supporting head !8 is normally appreciably farther forward than in prior constructions. In other words, in my improved construction, the bobbin supporting position of the bobbin support is such that the head !8 extends forwardly well under and in engagement with the bobbin 5 which is in transferring position, as suggested by Fig. 1. As thus constructed, the bobbin support positively holds the bobbin 5 up in place and thereby prevents the bobbin from dropping down and turning.

When the bobbin support i6 is in bobbin supporting position as shown by Fig. 1, it obstructs the path along which the bobbin 5 must move in being transferred to the shuttle. I accordingly provide means for moving the bobbin support rearwardly, away from bobbin supporting position, prior to each transferring operation of the transferrer 8. In the preferred embodiment, shown, such means consists of a Bowden wire 2| which acts as a positive connection from arm l5 to the bobbin support for moving the latter.

The particular Bowden wire shown at 2| includes a head 22 which is fixed in stop 20 and has a plunger 23 bearing against the bobbin support I 6. The other end of the wire 2| is provided with a head 24 which is fixed to the breast beam M by a clamp 25. The head 24 has a plunger 26 therein which plunger engages the rearwardly extending part of arm l5. The construction is such that normally, when arm I5 is down, the plunger 23 is withdrawn within the head 22 and bobbin support I6 is in engagement with stop 20. When arm i5 moves upwardly, it pushes plunger 26 into the head 24 and thus causes plunger 23 to project rearwardly out of the head 22. This pushes the bobbin support l6 rearwardly far enough to permit the bobbin 5 to be transferred. Such movement of the bobbin support occurs well in advance of any movement of the transferrer. After the transfer is completed and a new bobbin presented in transferring position, the arm I5,

plungers 26 and 23, and the bobbin support all return to their normal positions.

Having fully disclosed the preferred embodiment of my invention, I claim:

1. In a bobbin changing loom, the combination of a hopper arranged to successively present reserve bobbins in transferring position, a transferrer, a swinging bobbin support pivotally mounted on said hopper for movement into and outof supporting engagement with the bobbin which is in transferring position, means including an arm movable to initiate operation of said transferrer, and means operated by said arm prior to each transferring operation for moving said bobbin support out of engagement with the bobbin which is in transferring position.

2. In a bobbin changing loom, the combination of a rotary hopper arranged to successively present reserve bobbins in transferring position, a normally stationary transferrer having a periodic bobbin transferring movement, a swinging bobbin support pivotally mounted on said hopper for movement to and from bobbin supporting position, means including an arm movable to initiate transferring operation of said transferrer, and positive connections from said arm to said bobbin support for moving the latter away from bobbin supporting position prior to each said transferring operation.

3. In a bobbin changing loom, the combination of a rotary hopper arranged to successively present reserve bobbins in transferring position, a normally stationary transferrer having a periodic bobbin transferring movement, a swinging bobbin support pivotally mounted on said a normally stationary transferrer, a swinging bobbin support adapted to be moved away from bobbin supporting position before each transferring operation and to be returned to said position after completion of each said operation, means for initiating transferring operation of said transferrer, and a Bowden wire connecting said means with said bobbin support for moving the latter as aforesaid.

' CARL D. BROWN. 

